The long shadow cast by Chris Eubank Jnr's father, the indefinable Chris Eubank Snr., has proven to be a heavy one during his career as a professional fighter. Like so many sons of famous father's he has been offered opportunities and renumeration beyond the scope of his ability but equally, has had to fight hard to distinguish himself from the collective memory of Eubank Senior's accomplishments.

It is a contradictory duopoly that perhaps only Marvis Frazier or Julio Cesar Chavez Jnr could fully understand. Since his first appearances on television as a young boy in the background of his father's life in the 'fly on the wall' show At Home with the Eubanks filmed at the end of Eubank Snr's career, Chris Eubank has wanted to box.

Ill conceived videos of him in brawls in car parks as a 16-year-old reflective of his desire to fight, of the fire that burned within, unguided outside boxing, despite the affluence of his childhood surroundings. As a contender, Chris Eubank Jnr. has never quite proved himself anything other than competitive at world level - the lightly regarded IBO belt notwithstanding. He has fallen short in a challenge to George Groves and lost to Billy Joe Saunders for the British, Commonwealth and European titles in a fight which occurred early in both their careers and feels like a life time ago too.

His natural athleticism and dedication to his conditioning has been conspicuous throughout his 14 years as a professional. Coupled with the lasting fascination with his family name and his own innate ability to promote, Eubank Jnr. has continued to be relevant long after the peak of his physical prime and with his ceiling as a fighter long since reached.

Aged 36, he can no longer boast the hand speed of his twenties nor should he be boxing as a Middleweight having been successful as a Super-Middleweight 10 years ago. It is a division that requires sacrifice beyond the advisable for a man of almost 6ft but is necessary in order to facilitate the fights with Conor Benn which are rich in reward considering the advantages of size and experience Eubank Jnr. retains.

There has always been prudence in his matchmaking, often influenced by his father's desire to moderate risk. The most famous instance of this was his decision to decline to fight Gennadiy Golovkin for the Middleweight title. Viewed as an invitation to punishment rather than possibility, Eubank's career faltered as a result. For some observers, the bluff of his potential had been called. He could, after all, be using this brand recognition to secure title shots at Middleweight and Super-Middleweight were he inclined to.

And so, here he stands. On the edge of what remains of his youth. Fatherhood of his own ahead and the irritation of Conor Benn before him. A man fighting demons of his own. Not least the spectre of father Nigel's beloved place in boxing folklore and the blemishes failed tests for performance enhancing drugs and the two year hiatus in his career have left on his reputation.

For much of the public there is apathy and ignorance around that period. Boxing is not the mainstream pursuit it was when Nigel and Chris Snr. pushed each other to the limit of endurance all those years ago. A sport now confined to the margins, hidden behind ever more convoluted pay walls and in the labyrinth of belts and sanctioning bodies it has permitted to envelope it. Boxing fans know the truth of what this match up is. An attempt to reduce Eubank to a point the fight is more competitive. The weight loss is a handicap.

By that metric the first fight was a success. Eubank won but was hampered by depleted energy and strength. He won the fight clearly, but it required a late round surge that left Eubank dangerously exhausted and requiring hospital treatment for a number of days in the aftermath. It was a victory of will as much as ability - it made for absorbing viewing - reminiscent of their father's clashes but such efforts usually echo long into the future.

The rematch will be similar. Eubank again depleted by making 160 pounds and also aged by the depths he reached summoning those last scoops of will last time. It is a match made in opportunism rather than as a stepping stone to a greater prize. It delivered entertainment last time at a cost bordering on the precarious. There is a sense, Benn will be stronger for the experience, Eubank weaker. That Benn is still progressing, Eubank only declining.

A rubicon may be reached. Let us hope, as beguiled as we are by the sport and her willing protagonists, that it is only the competitive crossroads that is reached and not one in which a fighter's well being is sacrificed.

Their father's can both lecture passionately on the burden that can impose on all involved as much as the glory their sons are trying to recreate.